The Longing for Devotion

Abstract

Reading philosophical and psychological literature on human motivation, we are confronted with long lists of things that people want. We want happiness and freedom from pain; acceptance by groups; a sense of achievement; perhaps self-determination or self-actualization; perhaps a sense of power. But there is something that often goes unmentioned in these lists: we seek a form of devotion. The longing for devotion plays a crucial and underappreciated role in ethical, social, and political life. Devotion is a form of commitment that is impervious to ordinary forms of rational argumentation, that resists tradeoffs and compromises, and that tends to be associated with what empirical psychologists call sacred values. Drawing on real-life examples, empirical psychology, and philosophical reflection, this chapter examines the way in which devotion and sacred values play a pervasive—but often hidden—role in human life. In addition, this introductory chapter provides a brief summary of the book’s contents.

An Introduction to the Philosophy of Fanaticism

“…Or it could involve the unjustifiable assertation of oneself as an authority, not subject to civil or social restraints (Colas 1997). Or ressentiment (see Katsafanas 2022). And there are other possibilities: Cassam (2022) treats the fanatic as necessarily oriented toward morally perverse ideals.…”

“…They are invulnerable to the e ects of critical reasoning. In Katsafanas (2022), I o ered a more detailed characterization of this aspect, calling it dialectical invulnerability. A commitment is dialectically invulnerable when there is no argument, distinction, clarification, or other dialectical move that would dislodge it or cause it to dissipate.…”

“…Psychological and sociological studies reveal that sacred values are pervasive features of human life, far more pervasive than fanaticism, showing up in many religious, political, ethical, and personal contexts. I've argued that this is no accident: valuable features of ethical and social life depend on treating some values as sacred (Katsafanas 2022).…”

“…A resentment narrative, once introduced into a population, can find wounded individuals; amplify and entrench their sense of fragility; and thereby turn them into fanatics. On my account, this is why fanaticism is so dangerous: it spreads through a population when individuals experience themselves as su ering and are attracted to a narrative that redirects the su ering into a form of resentful hatred (see Katsafanas 2022).…”